Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Mark Ahlem of Charles Ahlem Dairy and Chris
Following the tour, the group participated in a 3-part round robin session, with presentations given by Denise Mullinax on Sustainability in the California Dairy Industry; Liz Adams, DVM on A Day in the Life of a Dairy Cow Vet; and Maureen Bligh, RD with the California Dairy Council on Dairy's Important Role in a Nutritious Diet.
We were then served a Delicious lunch, catered by Amanda De Jager, owner of the Piano Cafe in Merced. The menu, which was created and prepared by Amanda, a California dairy daughter, mom and chef, and her team included...
Vanilla Italian Sodas with California Dairy Cream Drizzle
Bravo Farms Cheddar Chipotle Beer Soup with House Made Sea Salt Pretzels
Wedge Salad with bacon, chives, cherry tomatoes and Point Reyes Blue Cheese topped with Buttermilk fried onion strings 
Pistachio Gelato Palate Cleanser (below)
Roasted beef tenderloin medallions over Fiscalini Cheddar mashed potatoes with sauteed fall vegetables, drizzled with shallot-port butter (below)
And a delicious dessert of Pumpkin Creme Brulee with Mini Gingersnap Cookies!
These are the only photos I managed to snap of my lunch... the other courses I devoured much too quickly to even think of grabbing my camera! Yum!
The herdsman at Charles Ahlem Dairy, Frank, and his family also joined us for lunch. His boys and Clayton, who arrived home from preschool in time for lunch, hit it off in no time!

After lunch, the group boarded the bus for San Francisco and a cable car ride to Top of the Mark for light dinner and drinks. Friday morning it was off to SFO to head for home.
We would like to thank the CMAB and the Mom-to-Mom group for sharing the day with us and allowing us to introduce you to our dairy life! We hope you enjoyed your visit and that we were able to help bring a face of Real California Milk to life. Be sure to visit the CMAB website to meet other CA dairy families and contact us if there is any way we can be of assistance. We hope you each had a safe journey home!

Check in with the ladies who came to visit us... visit their blogs using the links below:

     OH Mommy 
          It's My Life...
          Blissfully Domestic
 Peachhead            

2 comments:

Aunt Bee's Garden said...

Thank you so much for having us. Thank you also for the mention on your post. I was very impressed with your family's farm and really enjoyed it. I have been following the comments on Linda's blog and I am sure some of the negative ones are very frustrating. People are always looking for stuff to be mad about. I have added your a link to your blog on mine. I have not written about the trip yet, still trying to decide how to fit it all in. Thanks again.

Unknown said...

We are so glad that you enjoyed your visit! We live in an industry that is often misunderstood or misinterpreted and we love having the opportunity to share what we do. Please don't hesitate to contact us if we can be of assistance!